Where to Get Items to Sell on eBay

Updated on March 13, 2011

Start With Basic Items to Sell

A lot of potential sellers want to get started selling on eBay but don't know where to get the items to sell. There are a number of places available where anyone can get stuff to sell on eBay. Most of those places are right under your nose.

The key to finding items to sell on is to identify the places that regularly have new items to sell and visiting those places regularly. This can take trial and error at first, particularly if there are a lot of these places in your community. But, after finding a few quality places, you can focus on those exclusively.

Start by looking around your house at things you want to get rid of. Most people have plenty of clothing and other items that they don't want anymore. Those items can take up space in your home, or you can sell them on eBay and make a little money to buy the things you do want.

Finding eBay Items Away From Home

Move on to simple garage sales. This sounds a lot easier than it really is, but the profit potential is unlimited. Before buying anything from a garage sale, make sure you know how much the item is worth. Even if something is a great bargain at the sale, the asking price may still be more than people are willing to pay on eBay. Buy items that you are familiar with so that you can be sure of a profitable sale. Many potential sellers have bought items at garage sales for much less than the item would be worth in a store only to find out that the going eBay price was less than they paid. This is a quick way to end up with a garage full of junk and no money to show for it.

Think about things you've personally bought and shopped for on eBay. Chances are that you remember the price range for those items. If you can find similar items, you then know how much the items will sell for and you know how much you can spend on them.

Other Places to Buy Items

Another place to look for items is the local thrift stores. Some of the most profitable collectibles, such as ceramics and figurines, can be bought in thrift stores. Visit these stores often to get the best items before someone else snaps them up. Keep in mind that other eBay sellers are visiting thrift stores regularly and will buy the items first if given the chance. When you do find thrift store items to sell on eBay, remember to clean them up before listing them. Never sell a dirty item or you will risk negative feedback. Think about how clean you would want an item to be if you were to keep it in your own home.

Estate sales are another place to get inexpensive items to sell. These sales can be expensive, but they are often the best source of antiques and high-dollar collectable items for eBay. Be selective in what you buy, however, because there's a good chance that the bidding price will go over what you can expect to earn from selling the item. Also keep in mind that that most estate sales and estate auctions add a 10 percent commission to the price of each sale. Factor that into the price of each item.

If you want things in bulk, call manufacturers of items that interest you and see if you can sign up as a distributor. If you have a business license it is usually possible to buy items for wholesale prices with the intention of reselling. make sure, however, that the bullk price is low enough to bring in a profit if the items are sold on eBay.

A lot of sellers want to go straight to dropshipping to avoid the buying and shipping part of the sale. One of the problems with dropshipping is often that the eBay prices for the items are lower than the price available from the dropshipper. To avoid eBay fees that don't result in sales, avoid dropshipping.

Books for Creating a Sucessful eBay Business

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Comments 4 comments

Hello i saw your advert place on eAby and i am interested in buying it.Mostly i pay by check,concerning the shipment of the item, my mover will be responsible for the pickup as soon as the money clears in your bank. upon your confirmation of receipt of the payment, i dont want you to look for another buyer and i want you to remove the advert from craigslist and consider the item sold to me.. I will be needing the following for the payment to be done as soon as possible Your full name,address n phone number.thanks David...

Beaks 8 years ago from USA Author

Oh sure, I'm definitely going to do that, lol.

joe nicholes 7 years ago

good ideas

Mike Bunata 7 years ago

Nice post. I will definitely be reading more from you. You should check out my site at http://ebayhomebusiness.net/. My partner and I have been helping people create an eBay home business. Thanks again for your post.